Quest of Truth and the Order of the Phoenix: Chapter 3 - Diagon Alley
Several days later, week before start of school term…
Ed , Hermione, Harry and the Weasley family were advancing towards the entrance of Diagon Alley. Little did they know what lay in store for them when they entered the place. People all around stared at the strange arrival as Ed stepped to the forefront of the party. They all probably thought he was a werewolf with those burning golden eyes.
"Comeon dearest," Molly nudged Ed towards Olivanders, "We need to get you a wand."
"Wand?" Ed grumbled, Is it just me or are all these fools mad?
"Yes, deary, a Wand." Molly gestured with her own wand, "In you go."
Ed and the group made their way into the shop and Ed observed a man probably as old as Hohenhime his bastard father of 400 years wander out from the shelves replacing boxes as he came forth.
"Hello Molly," Olivander looked cheerfully towards the party. "You've bought a lot of them along today now haven't you?"
"Well, that is mainly because Edward here," She poked Edward with her thumb, "Requires a wand, and we're all curious to see what he'll end up getting."
"A wand, for this young man, he's not a werewolf is he?" Olivander queried looking at Ed's eyesand then explained "Wand's rebound upon them immediately."
"I'm not a werewolf oldman," Ed growled danergously, "I'm a pissed off 16 year old. So lets make this quick."
Everyone stood there, flabbergasted by Ed's treatment of Olivander.
"Yes," Olivander dragged the word out, "I believe we can help you. Hold out your wand arm then."
A blank stare greeted Olivander.
"You're preferred hand." Olivander answered the unspoken question.
"I'm ambidextrous." Ed stated matter of factly.
"Interesting, well then, allow me to take some measurements." Olivander flicked his own wand and his tape measure suddenly began measuring Ed.
"Only 5'2" tall? He is very short for a 16 ye-a-r…" Olivander was cut off by a murderous intent lurking in Ed's eyes, warning him to shut up or face dire consequences.
"Yes, let us move on then." Olivander stuttered, "Hmmm, an anger like that will need a wand to match."
Olivander walked back among the shelves, checking boxes and throwing more and more onto the pile on the counter. There had to be 50 wands on the counter. Everyone was dumb founded at how many Olivander thought my fit Ed. He took the first one out of the box and handed it to Ed. "8 Inches, Cherry, Dragon Heart String Core. Well made. Well go on, give it a wave." Olivander encouraged.
Ed waved the wand and all hell broke loose. The front windows shattered, wands flew of shelves everywhere and people were starring at the wreck which was once the front of Olivander's shop. "I guess not," Olivander muttered to himself. He began to open the next box when he decided to stop. None of these wands would suit the boy, he would need something more powerful even than the Dark Lord's own wand. Only a handful of wands in the shop fitted that description, he waltzed passed several shelves plucking off the 5 possibilities that he had. Only one of these would suit the boy, but the devastation they could cause would be catastrophic.
Olivander placed the boxes on the counter and took out the first one, "11 Inches, Yew with a Threstal hair core. Very sturdy. Give this one a wave."
Ed did so, Olivander probably regretted telling Ed to wave it as Olivander's own antique robes were set on fire by the wand. "Not too destructive, so it wasn't far away at least." He plucked another from a box, "9 Inches, Rosewood, Phoenix Tail Core. Good for powerful spells. Flexible. Try this one." Olivander and Ed both appreared unfazed by the now burning robes. Ed waved the Rosewood wand and things went even further pair shaped as the counter suddenly split in half and fell to the ground in two separate pieces. Olivander gawked, this had never happened before. He grabbed the wand from Ed's hand before any more destruction was caused.
"Interesting, a reaction like no other that I have ever seen before." Olivander muttered, starring at the wreckage he spied the one wand he'd hoped wouldn't ever leave his store. It was made of Bonsai, a rare thing to use in a wand due to the consistent bad luck that came from killing the tree. He decided to try it, there was no harm, he didn't expect it would work anyway. "Here try this. Bonsai, 10 Inches, Threstal Heart and Phoenix tail-feather core. Highly destructive. Give it a wa-…."
Red light glowed through the store emanating from the wand and Ed. No one knew what was happening, but Olivander theorised this 1000 year old wand had finally found an owner.
Meanwhile what Ed was seeing was entirely different to everyone else, he'd been pulled to the gate with Truth standing in front of him, the timeless smirk clear upon its face. "So you've found a wand Edward Elric, a rarity for sure given your condition and lack of need. Afterall, you are the true philosopher's stone. You shall never age, never die and will never need anything other than your mind to create alchemy now. But now is not the time to keep you away from the wizards who are going to make your life a living hell. Know this, there are several tasks you will complete for me in order to return home, and if you refuse, I guarantee you will suffer an unending pain." Truth smirked before fading away and leaving Ed starring into nothingness in Olivander's store.
"That wand," Olivander gulped, "Was never meant to find an owner. It was meant to be the needle in the hay stack, impossible to do and yet it was done. It has been over 1,000 years and this wand never found an owner."
"Well I'll be," Molly muttered It matches his personality perfectly, Molly thought, Highly Destructive
"How much do I owe you then old man?" Molly was about to reprimand Ed when Olivander laughed and told him not to worry about it.
"I will not leave here without some sort of payment," Ed sighed, he was about to use Alchemy to repair all the damage he had done to Olivander's that morning but before he could, he'd waved the wand by accident while focusing on repairing everything and all of a sudden, windows had reformed, the counter was back in the right position with the wands Olivander had attempted sitting atop it. Everyone in his presence was stunned, this boy had without even knowing it performed magic and restored Olivander's store to its original state.
"I dare say my boy," Olivander chuckled, "That payment will not be required. Look at what you just did, all to its original state, and not even a word mumbled. I see a prodigy in the near future."
Ed's smile fell below his blond bangs where no one could see it, reminiscing in the memories he had of Amestris, which made him then remember Al and bought the look of infinite sorrow back to his haunted eyes.
Molly and the group observed a very forlorn Ed as they advanced further down Diagon Alley, Hermione actually wondered if what Olivander had last said meant something deeper down to Ed than they all knew. It echoed in her mind I see a prodigy in the near future. What in that phrase could set his bad mood into one of never ending sorrow?
Not one to be still, Ed kept advancing further down the alley and the rest of the group suddenly noticed his fast disappearance and realised that they needed to catch up to him fast if they were to have any hope of seeing what other interesting things may happen to him during their visit of Diagon Alley. Little did anyone know that the best was yet to come. Ed stalked into Florish and Blots before he'd even thought about it, books always called his attention best. Ed was astounded at the infinitely long and high stacks and shelves of books, many taller than he was. A tick appearing on his forehead as he realised that he'd be unable to reach many if any of the alchemy tome's, which rested on the top shelves of the store and were unable to be reach by someone who was barely five feet tall.
The results of his time in Florish and Blots left Dumbledore with a pretty large bill to pick up when he next went in. It also left Ed with stacks of books higher than himself, not only did he need to catch up on four or five years worth of curriculum, he also needed books for the current year, and then there were the books that Ed just wanted. The nickname given to him by Winry holding true, 'Alchemy Freak'.
Molly being worried about the young man carrying a stack of books heavier than he was decided enough was enough and placed them into an endless back for him so that he wouldn't have to worry about weight either. The group then moved on to Magical Menagerie where Ed was informed he would have to pick a pet out of an owl, a cat or a rat. The suggestion made by the group was of course for an owl. Ed was reluctant to accept this suggestion though as h did not firmly believe in having pets. He and Al had been denied pets whenever they'd bought them home injured to their mother. Ed himself had denied Al the right to have a kitten numerous times due to their almost constant travel and felt it would be in bad taste to obtain a pet for himself having denied Alphonse for all those years. However, it wasn't going to be a choice Ed made for himself as he wandered through the store staring at all the animals.
Ed glared at most of the animals, more a test than anything to see if they were worthy of him and whether or not they'd do as he wanted. None did, all looked away from him. Then the sound of a commotion became apparent to those in the front of the store as a door to the rear opened and a beautiful Red Phoenix flew out of the back room. Looking around the store it must have thought Ed looked just tall enough to be the perfect perch, so it decided to land on his head. When Ed felt the claws of a bird on his head, he tried to swat it away, instead when his left hand came back down, his glove was gone and there was a bleeding patch of skin where the bird had bit him. Ed was not happy, his right arm went up to hit the bird and as he made contact with it, its claws clenched around several strands of his hair and it began to fly off of Ed, painfully ripping out several of Ed's hairs in the process, enraging the young alchemist even further. Ed's thoughts turned murderous and as he thought quite angrily, stone appeared from the floor capturing the bird before it could fly any further. Red lightning then crackled around Ed's head as he regrew the hairs he'd lost.
The owner of Magical Menagerie removed themselves from a pile of kittens which they'd fallen into and approached the group cautiously. "I must apologise for that," He spluttered, "This Phoenix just flew in the back doors, I've been trying to tame it, with limited success. It thought it would be more fun to attack me instead I gather."
"Yes," Ed grumbled.
"Did anyone else notice that bird has a similar temperament to someone we all know?" Ron pipped up.
"Who?" Harry and Hermione questioned at the same time. Ed just glared at Ron, already guessing the implications.
"Eddy!" Ron shouted. He really shouldn't have. Before anyone knew it, Ron was laying on the floor with a broken nose and Ed was still in the same position as before. Maybe I could get used to this stone…. Ed mused. A slab of rock had formed out of thin air and rushed at Ron before he'd had a chance to react. Ed was falling over with laughter, so was the Phoenix, even though its legs were trapped, it was cawing in a way that Ed couldn't help but laugh, this thing had his personality alright.
The shopkeeper just stared at the Phoenix and Ed, then he saw it, the bond had been formed, this Phoenix had picked its owner, regardless of Ed's wants, he now had an exotic bird to look after.
"I know this will probably come as a shock to you all, " The keeper announced, "But this Phoenix has actually picked an owner, the one and only person it will be loyal to throughout its life. And that sir, is you." The man pointed at Ed. Ed stood up from the floor starring at the bird, it grinned at him in a way only he could see, it was mischievous, oh was he ever going to have fun with this companion.
"Ok," Ed grumbled, he concentrated on the stone he'd created to capture the young looking Phoenix and it disappeared, freeing the bird. "I'll take it, on the provision that you supply all the food for it."
"It's a he sir, and that won't be necessary," The keeper smirked, "While Phoenix's are loyal to only their masters, they still have one higher priority and that is themselves. Phoenix's are known for hunting their own prey. It keeps them fit in a way, I'd advise you against asking this one to carry your mail to often though, he might not bring back what you expect."
Ed grumbled and the Phoenix landed on his shoulder, it decided to perch itself there for what would likely be the rest of the trip to Diagon Alley. The others along the way picked up various supplies and treats, but when Ed was told he would require robes, he vehemently refused. "I don't wear anything other than my current attire, ever." He'd hit back.
"It is a school requirement that you wear them," A voice for behind said, "If you do not, your place at Hogwarts could very soon be terminated."
"Professor McGonagal" Hermione nodded.
"I can assure you now 'Professor'" Ed glared, "I will not be wearing robes. I create my own clothes, the most I will require are the materials I want. Any attempt to force me to wear robes, will result in rather unpleasant consequences for all staff members involved." A glint appeared in Ed and the Phoenix's eyes at once, yet again confirming that they were indeed meant for each other
Later Order Headquarters….
Everyone gaped as Hermione, Harry and a rather bad looking Ron recounted one of their most amazing ever trips to Diagon Alley. Including Ed's rather destructive work on Olivander's, the explanation of the now rather appreciated Phoenix [it will be explained I assure you, and yes it will have a name, it just might surprise you all] and Ed's rather large purchase of books. As well as his absolute refusal to wear robes, at which point Dumbledore burst out laughing.
Ed glared at him he wasn't exactly jovial. The Phoenix had been perched on his shoulder ever since it came to him. Now, it wouldn't leave his side, and it imitated his every emotional action and it was starting to get annoying. "He wants you to name him," Dumbledore chuckled indicating why the Phoenix wouldn't leave Ed alone. Ed stared at the Phoenix, it started back. Ed's thoughts raced in search for a name. He had three possibilities, Alphonse, after his wise but younger brother, Yuki, a name meaning happiness and good fortune, something he himself certainly didn't have and then there was Jabez, an ancient religious word meaning 'pain and sorrow'. In the end Ed had to make a decision, and not being one to bring up bad memories or delve into areas he despised, Ed picked his preferred name. "I name you Yuki." Yuki cawed and then things began to go haywire, starting with the ancient portrait of Mrs. Black howling.
Ed stood up in frustration and Yuki flew out of the room, likely to do as it was won't and attack the painting for disturbing both itself and its master. Sure enough, when everyone, Ed included made it down the hallway, Mrs. Black was screaming "Mudblood's, filthy mudblood's in my home." Over and over. Ed was agitated, so was Sirius, before anyone knew what was going on, the shouting stopped, Yuki had pulled the curtain's over Mrs. Black successfully. [A/N: Very intelligent Phoenix he is proving already, with a great sense of humour to follow]. Ed turned to Sirius, his face displaying more than anger, it was concentrated vehemence. "How come you haven't just taken her off the wall and thrown her away?" Ed asked.
"We've tried," Sirius moaned, "We think she put a permanent sticking charm on it."
Ed grumbled, clapped his hands and stuck them on the wall around Mrs. Black, deconstructing it and stopping there. Sure enough, the portrait fell to the floor. "Anyone know where I can find the nearest magical landfill?" Ed asked to the astounded onlookers.
Sirius burst out laughing while numerous others, the kids included just stared. He performed wandless magic, someone was about to say as much when Sirius spoke up. "Thank you Ed, I never would of thought of destroying the wall to get rid of her." Sirius grinned, oh you could tell, he and Ed were gonna get along real well. Maybe Ed would be one of the many troublemakers who could stand up to the reputation of the Marauder's in their day. Only time would tell.
Yes, I know, I'm inherently evil for making you, my oh so fabulous readers and reviewers wait for this chapter and even if I apologised a billion times over I don't think I'd deserve an 'it's okay'. It should also be noted it is currently exam time at my school, so I may struggle to get another chapter out in an absolute hurry, hopefully not, but it's a worst case scenario thing for you all incase I don't.
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